Filinvest Land profit jumps despite high interest rates

MANILA, Philippines — The residential business of Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI) continued to flourish despite high interest rates that potentially discourage housing loans, ending the first quarter with a 9-percent growth in its bottom line.

The Gotianun-led property developer, in a disclosure on Friday, reported that its net income attributable to equity holders grew to P741 million as consolidated revenues improved by 9 percent to P4.69 billion.

“Our company achieved growth in all its business segments during the first quarter of the year, despite challenges arising from high interest rates and inflation,” said Tristan Las Marias, president and CEO of FLI.

Key policy interest rates are kept at a 17-year high of 6.5 percent as inflation tilts to the higher end of the government’s target band of 2 percent to 4 percent for the year.

Still, residential revenues climbed 4 percent to P2.79 billion as construction activities progressed for housing and medium-rise condominium projects. Reservation sales—an indication of future cash flows—were up 13 percent to P5.2 billion.

READ: Filinvest Land net income up 30% to P3.8B in 2023

Revenues from the mall business surged by 86 percent to P558 million as mall occupancy and shopper traffic increased.

Its portfolio includes Festival Mall in Muntinlupa City, Main Square in Bacolod City, Fora in Tagaytay City, and II Corso in Cebu City.

Office revenues, meanwhile, inched up 0.65 percent to P1.16 billion following newly closed leases.

This year, FLI intends to launch P16-billion worth of residential projects and finish eight office projects.

“We are optimistic that our efforts will lead to even better results…we are also excited about the prospect of further expanding our business this year,” Las Marias added.